The development of the EDVAC computer system of 1948 is often cited as the beginning of the computer era. Since that time, computer systems have evolved into extremely sophisticated devices, and computer systems may be found in many different settings. Computer systems typically include a combination of hardware, such as semiconductors and circuit boards, and software, also known as computer programs.
Many computer programs exist that collect statistics or other data on an ongoing basis over time. In various environments, these statistics might reflect events that occur internal to the computer system or external to the computer system. Examples of events that can occur internal to a computer system include the number of users who access the computer system, the number of jobs or processes executing, the number of errors encountered, or the amount of memory in use. Examples of events that can occur external to the computer system, but for which statistical data can be detected, collected, or received, include the room temperature, the atmospheric pressure, or the number of vehicles that pass by a certain road location. Many other examples are possible, and a wide variety of statistical data is prevalent in all aspects of science, education, business, and government, but the characteristic that all of these examples share is that they are capable of changing over time.
Users often want to periodically (e.g., daily, weekly, monthly, or yearly) review and analyze these types of statistical data, in order to determine anomalies and/or trends in the data as the data changes. Users typically experience that a graphical visualization or presentation of the data is helpful in aiding their understanding and analysis of the data. For example, a bar chart of vehicle data graphically illustrating that the number of cars on a road peaks during rush hour is far easier to understand than viewing a column of times and associated numbers.
In an attempt to help users understand their data, many examples of graphing and visualization software exist, but they all require the user to manually enter data limits, thresholds, and other parameters. For example, users must manually enter a specification of the data they wish to view and manually enter the time periods associated with that data. This manual process is cumbersome and error prone.
Thus, there is a need for a better technique for aiding users in specifying the data that they wish to view.